Sound fiscal management. Prudent financial stewardship. Let's give the man his due.
"Mr. Williams has developed a reputation as a sound fiscal manager during his six years in office."
"...observers wondering whether the global economic meltdown will erode the premier's legacy as a prudent financial steward." (emphasis added)
But if the currently en vogue Keynesian view of spending yourself out of a recession holds sway in Confederation Building this week, and the Government decides to increase expenditure by the same year-over year increase as they did last year, Danny Williams will have effectively, in a span of six years, doubled the annual expenditure of the provincial government.
UPDATE: Thar she blows. Tomorrow should be interesting, to say the least.
5 comments:
The Eighth Floor is apparently prepraring a visual presentation to counter your graph. According to VOCM, "Lieutenant Governor John Crosbie will paint the picture, as he delivers the Speech from the Throne."
http://www.vocm.com/news-info.asp?id=35026
But seriously, say what you will about this Premier and his fiscal track record. You could mention many good things - debt and deficit reduction, reduction of pension liabilities, record revenues from oil and from Ottawa. But you can't attribute any such things to fiscal "prudence" or "stewardship". The guy's been spending money like a drunken sailor since his first election. Some people say you should spend when times are tough, some suggest you should only spend when you have it, but Danny - true to his all-things-to-all-people approach - seems to adhere to both schools of thought. Can anyone name a single item (aside from the Liberals Opposition's legislative budget) on which this government has actually reduced spending?
You're right, but it doesn't stop there. As with any budget, this one will be one part economics, one part politics. While you've laid out the facts on DW's fiscal spending, we also need to take into account his political spending.
While DW has been busy spending his fiscal capital as fast as he can, he's been spending his political capital even faster. Ottawa-bashing is rarely, if ever, a vote-loser in NL; but political chickens eventually come home to roost alongside their fiscal siblings.
It will be interesting to see where DW allocates the blame for the red ink. Will it be 100% Harper, or will he throw something else into the blame blender for VOCM to feed the call-in shows?
As with any budget, this one will be one part economics, one part politics.
Come. On. Now.
When was the last time there was a budget with any economics in it?
Mea Culpa. I meant to say Danconomics.
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